The End of my Life
by El Juno
Summary: Matt is ready to make up to Tai for everything, but is it too late? The beginning of a series. Contains Taito, Mira, Daiken, Takori, Hiyako...etc. Chapter 4 up, where we learn about Daisuke's bargaining tactics, and a decision is made.
1. Part 1

Gods, I have too much to write already, what am I doing starting another series?  
  
Anyway, this is a Taito series, set in the future, after Matt has become a star. This will contain large amounts of Taito and Mira (along with Mimi and Sora's daughter, Lilly,) and may contain trace amounts of Hiyako, Jyoushiro, Kensuke, Takori and peanuts.  
  
*****  
  
My life ends tomorrow.  
  
Tomorrow I leave the band. Tomorrow I end this whole life built up around Ishida Yamato the rock star.  
  
Tomorrow I go home to Tai and I hug him and I apologize for how shittily I've treated him since I became famous and I apologize for everything I've done wrong, and I apologize for ignoring him and I apologize and I apologize and I apologize.  
  
Tomorrow I take my money and I buy myself the glasses I've needed for a while but didn't get because they didn't fit my image, and I bleach the black dye out of my hair and let it grow blonde again, and I take the rest of that money and I open a store. Just a stupid little store. Used books. Musical instruments. Just general junk.  
  
Tomorrow I will wiggle out of these tight leather pants and put on jeans. I'll take off all of the stupid jewelry, except the ring on my right ring-finger, the little silver ring Tai gave me. I will wipe off all the make-up and chip off the nail polish and I will wander around wearing sneakers and worn T-shirts and I'll start smiling because I don't have to look gloomy any more and because Tai always really liked my smile.  
  
Tomorrow I show up on our doorstep and I greet Tai, and I call Sora and Mimi and their little Lilly, and I call TK and Iori, and Joe and Izzy, and Daisuke and Ken, and Miyako and Kari, and I apologize to them all. Even Jun. Especially Jun. I'll call and apologize to Jun. I think I treated her as shitty or shittier than everyone else, with the exception, of course, of Tai.  
  
Tomorrow I hug Tai and we buy ice cream and we take a walk like we always used to. Tomorrow I start writing poetry again, not just songs.  
  
Tomorrow I become me again.  
  
*****  
  
Tomorrow my life starts again.  
  
I packed my things and left a letter for Matt. Not a note, a letter. Three pages. Typed. Single spaced. And every word is true.  
  
It's about how badly he's been treating me, and how I don't have to take it. About how I told him to choose between me and the band, and he obviously chose the band. About how I know all about the drugs and the little fanboys and everything.  
  
About how I've always known and just ignored it until now.  
  
About how I don't recognize him anymore. About how he's died to me and some strange clone has replaced him. A bad clone.  
  
About how in love we once were, and where it went, and how I miss him.  
  
And how I never want to see him again.  
  
I'm going to show up on the doorstep at Sora and Mimi's farm and sleep on their couch for a few days. They've been expecting this for a while, I think. At least they gave me an open invitation. Then I'm going to go away. Find a city far away from here. Open a store, maybe. Mourn for a while. Then, start again.  
  
Without Matt.  
  
Tomorrow my life starts again.  
  
Tomorrow I start living again.  
  
Tomorrow.  
  
But right now I'm going to fall asleep in a seat on this bus and try not to dream of him.  
  
*****  
  
Ishida Yamato walked up to the house. Do or die time, Matty. He thought. Go in there and eat crow.  
  
He pushed the buttons on the alarm system and waited. It gave it's happy beep and blinked a green light and he pushed the door open and walked into the house.  
  
Into the cold, dark house.  
  
"Tai?" He called.  
  
No responce.  
  
"Tai? Tai, where are you?"  
  
Still no response. Suddenly the dark house became a horrible sign. Something had happened. It had to...  
  
No, wait...maybe he was asleep. Maybe Tai was asleep and he'd run up and apologize and everything would be alright.  
  
Matt ran up the steps, two at a time. Got to the door and took a deep breath. No one's in there, he finally left me. What a...open the door, Matt.  
  
Matt pushed the door open, turned on the light. The room was empty. Beyond empty, the room was empty without a possibility of ever being full again. All the strewn clothes, the socks, the little mementoes and things which said "Tai," all of them were gone. And sitting on the cold, made bed, right in the middle like an oncoming truck, was a letter. Folded once and tied with a red ribbon.  
  
And tied in the bow of the ribbon was a single, pain band of silver. A ring.  
  
Tai had said "goodbye."  
  
*****  
  
TBC? 


	2. Part 2

*THREE YEARS PREVIOUS*  
  
Matt and Mimi sat and talked as the producer attempted to fix the broken reel.  
  
"So..." Mimi began.  
  
"So...how are things?" Matt forced out.  
  
"Great." Mimi displayed a hand with a small silver ring on it. "Sora and I are thinking of adopting a kid."  
  
"That would be great. Sora'd make a great mom."  
  
"Yeah." Mimi smiled, a look in her eyes as though she was already looking forward to taking care of a little one. "I think I really want a girl. Okay, thinking is a bit of an understatement. We're choosing names. I like Rose, myself. Or Lilly. Some flower name."  
  
"Great."  
  
Mimi sat and entwined her fingers. "How are things with you and Tai?"  
  
Matt forced a grin. "Tai and I are just wonderful, thank you for asking."  
  
"Oh, dear." Mimi took Matt's hand. "That bad?"  
  
"That bad."  
  
"I'm sorry. What...no. I won't ask."  
  
"You can ask. We've been...fighting. He doesn't like that we can't be open."  
  
"Why can't you? I mean, people know about me and Sora."  
  
"My manager..."  
  
"Ah. Yeah, mine was a bit pissy when I wanted to come out, too."  
  
"And there's more...I haven't exactly been...um..."  
  
"Clean or faithful?"  
  
"How'd you guess?"  
  
"I didn't need to guess, Matt. I know."  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"So, you backslid on the drugs and you've been sleeping with other guys."  
  
"And he knows." Matt closed his eyes. "I love him. I love him more than anything. But when I'm on the road and someone offers a toke or a beer, I can't say no that well. And then...when I've had a bit, I tend to get going with the harder things. Even if I'm not, they always make me want to...um...cuddle, and none too choosy about who I do it with."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"And now he's been asking me to choose, and I'm not sure if I can do that. Because choosing him would mean I have to keep away from these temptations...and we all know how many of them there are..."  
  
"And how bad you are at avoiding them."  
  
"Yeah. And now one of the guys I was with is...threatening to take the story to the papers. And I don't know what to do, or what's happening..."  
  
"It'll be okay, Matt. Things will work out."  
  
"Yeah. I try to think that. But..."  
  
"Matt." Mimi took both of Matt's hands in hers. "Listen. Tai really loves you. And you really love him. It'll work out, somehow. Don't worry."  
  
Matt nodded sadly. "Yeah. Hey, did you hear about TK?"  
  
"No, what?"  
  
"He moved in with Iori."  
  
"That's great."  
  
Mimi looked over at Matt, watching him as he tried to avoid really talking.  
  
"Just great." She echoed.  
  
*****  
  
*THE PRESENT*  
  
Sora rolled over in the night and reached over to pull her Mimi close.  
  
Sora got an armful of pillow.  
  
"Mi-chan?" She muttered, half awake.  
  
Hmm. Not there. She obviously already got up...  
  
Already got up?  
  
MY Mimi?  
  
I don't think so.  
  
Sora rolled over and slowly stood up. Something is wrong, she thought.  
  
And inside her, some unknown warrior-princess-esque protective urge unfolded.  
  
Sora slowly stalked out of the bedroom, picking up a baseball bat as she left. On catlike feet, she moved downstairs. Saw a light on in the kitchen.  
  
Mimi's there, she thought, and almost put the bat down before she saw...  
  
Something on the couch.  
  
A FORM on the couch.  
  
SOMEONE on the couch.  
  
Too big to be Mimi, or Lilly. Thus, someone who was not supposed to be there.  
  
"Okay, you." She muttered, raising the bat. "You better have a good explanation for..."  
  
"SORA!" Mimi yelled from the kitchen.  
  
"Mi-chan?"  
  
The form sat up. It had wild brown hair and a confused expression. "Huh?" It muttered.  
  
"Tai! You surprized me!"  
  
"Obviously." Tai muttered, looking at the bat.  
  
Sora blushed and put the bat down, then pulled Tai into a hug. "Hey there, big bro." She said.  
  
"Tai showed up last night." Mimi explained. "He needed a place to stay, and I offered him our couch. I didn't think you'd mind, Sor-chan. I ESPECIALLY didn't think come at him with a bat."  
  
"Yeah, well, I do it for you, Mi-chan. Hey, Tai, where's Matt?" Sora noticed a flash of pain come over Tai's face. "Nevermind." She muttered. "Good to see you."  
  
Mimi walked over and put a hand on Sora's shoulder. "Maybe we should let Tai sleep, Sor-chan."  
  
Mimi cocked her head towards the kitchen.  
  
Sora's sleep and adrenaline-addled brain took a second to realize what Mimi was saying. "Yeah." She said.  
  
Sora and Mimi walked into the kitchen, closing the door behind them.  
  
*****  
  
I don't want to mess up the bed so I kick off my shoes and curl up on top of the covers. I stare at the letter. I don't need to read it. I know what it says. And, honestly, I'm afraid to touch it. Once or twice I put out a hand and almost touch the very edge of the ribbon with the tip of my finger, but I always pull my hand away.  
  
I'm so tired, but I can't sleep here. Not here. And I don't want to leave. This room is so Tai, even without his things. The bed still smells a little bit like him, and he put these blankets in place. I think I'm about to fall apart. I'm so exhausted, I just took a redeye to get here, and I'm not exactly doing that well in general. And sleeping here alone would mean messing up these blankets he put in place, but leaving here would be like leaving him, and we all know I could never really sleep alone. That was always my problem. I can't sleep alone. Not sober, anyway.  
  
When I told Mimi about how things were going, at that recording session it-seems-so-long-ago, she told me not to worry. That things would work out. Yeah, Mimi, they worked out just great. They worked me out of the equation. How long ago was that? It was just before they adopted Lilly, so...  
  
Three years.  
  
Three years ago I knew how bad things were and I didn't do anything. I didn't save this.  
  
It's all my fault.  
  
The Cure tape I put on comes to an end, but I can't haul myself up to change it or put it back on so the house is plunged into the very silence I wanted to avoid.  
  
I can almost hear the silence. All the little noises...Tai's noises...the ones that used to drive me crazy...but without them...  
  
What am I going to do?  
  
I gave it all up to come back to him and he left. I waited too long, and I destroyed the one real thing in my life. And returned to an empty house...  
  
This house...  
  
I HATE this house.  
  
I bought this house with the proceeds from my first record. Tai and I planned to live here together.  
  
It ended up being just Tai living here.  
  
When I was just starting out, Tai and I lived in the world's tiniest apartment, above an "adult" bookstore. I worked at a record store. He went to school, had an internship at some big company. I got fired (why'd I get fired again? I don't remember. I think I insulted my boss.). I got a job at a diner. Buzzy's Roadkill Cafe. I had to wear an idiotic hat shaped like a vulture. Tai went to college.  
  
Then everything went bad. I got in my band...what a great band we were! Suncolor Graph. We really had a spirit, some meaning. Tai came to all our shows, everyone knew we were a couple. Then we got a record contract and a manager and an "image" and I went in the closet because our manager told me to be in the closet and I had to tell everyone that Tai was my secretary, and the band was on the road for months at a time when I could only call him at night, and someone gave me some drugs and they seemed okay, if they were a bit stronger than the pot the guys and I used to smoke, and before I knew what was happening I'd shot up and ended up with...Laine was it? That first time? And then it was just a series of drugs and groupies and I tried to hide it all from Tai, but he found out, at least about the drugs, and that one winter between tours I managed to go clean, just cigarettes and an occasional beer, but we finished our album and we went back on tour and all the same temptations were there and it all started again, and Tai gave me the message that he needed some time, which eventually turned into "The band or me" and I chose! I chose! I left the band, but it was too late and I showed up here and he'd left...probably went to Miyako and Kari's apartment. Or maybe Sora and Mimi's. They're farther. His blood sister or his soul sister, he went to one of them, and he left me alone in this huge bloody idiotic house and it's just me now and nobody cares.  
  
"Tai..." I moan. "Why didn't you just wait one more day?" I'm crying. I didn't realize it before, but I'm crying. Not tiny tears but great huffing sobs. The kind of cry that leaves you feeling worse, with a bright red face and a nose running ropes of snot. It feels like my heart and soul have been replaced with ground glass, like I'm burning all over, but it's a burning cold.  
  
I wonder if I should call someone, but I wonder what that would do, and then I feel shitty enough to try it and I get halfway through dialing TK-and-Iori's number before my hand freezes up and I hang up the phone (stupid duck phone Tai bought. I hate this duck.) because I don't know what I'd say to TK, and I definitely don't know what I'd say if Iori picked up...God, how did I manage to screw over everyone that meant anything to me? I stand up and pace for a second, try to light a cigarette but my hands are shaking so hard that it's a lost cause and then I think about having a drink but we don't have anything in the house because Tai was trying so hard to keep me clean and sober, at least at home, and that thought shakes me so hard that I start crying again, hands knotted in my hair and bawling like a baby and then I'm curled up on the floor with my back to the bed and I look over and I can see a picture of Tai and I when we went to Santa Monica pier and that just makes me cry until I can barely breathe and I wish someone was here, anyone, Gabumon, TK, Mimi, Kari, but especially I wish Tai was here and he hasn't even been gone for one day and I already miss him more than I missed anything in my miserable withered life.  
  
*****  



	3. Part 3

Okay, starting with this one I'm going to name the viewpoint character at each point, or write "general," since just about every section changes the viewpoint.  
  
Oh, and "Clickit" is the noise a phone makes when you hang it up or pick it up.  
  
*****  
  
*General*  
  
Ring, ring, ring.  
  
"Iori! Get the phone!"  
  
Ring, ring.  
  
"Iori!"  
  
Ring, ring, ring.  
  
"Fine. I'll get it. It's probably for you, though."  
  
Ring, ri...  
  
Clickit.  
  
"Y'ello?"  
  
"TK! Did you hear?"  
  
"Hear what, Kari?" TK was somewhat surprised to hear the voice of his longtime best friend, especially infused with such panic.  
  
"Okay. I'll say this slowly. Um...Sora called me last night. She says Tai spent last night on her couch. She thinks he left Matt."  
  
"Oh, God." TK was well aware that his brother was not the most well balanced person in the world. This could...  
  
"This could be bad, Kari."  
  
"Worse than bad. Tai had been making noises for a while, but..."  
  
"I never thought he'd really do it."  
  
"Neither did I."  
  
"So..."  
  
"I think you should call Matt, TK. He might need someone to talk to, and he'd listen to you."  
  
"He'd listen to me? That's news to me."  
  
"You know what I mean."  
  
"Yeah, I do. But one thing I've learned in the past few years is that Ishida Yamato only listens to Ishida Yamato."  
  
"TK, he's probably doing pretty badly right now. You know what he could do..."  
  
Images of two of Matt's previous hospital stays flashed in TK's mind. "Yeah. I do. It's just that he's been so...so..."  
  
"He's hurting, TK."  
  
"What about YOUR brother?"  
  
"That's who I plan to call."  
  
"Okay."  
  
"Okay." There was a rustling on Kari's end of the line. "Miyako sends her love to you and Iori."  
  
"Tell her we return it."  
  
"I'll call you back after I get off the line with Tai, okay."  
  
"Okay. Bye."  
  
"Bye."  
  
Clickit.  
  
*****  
  
*Matt*  
  
What's that noise?  
  
Quack, quack?  
  
Oh, yeah. The phone. Tai's stupid duck phone.  
  
Tai...  
  
The duck quacks a few more times and I finally screw up the courage to pick up the receiver.  
  
PleasebeTai...no...don'tbeTai...  
  
It takes me a few seconds before I finally speak.  
  
"...Hello?"  
  
*****  
  
*TK*  
  
"...Hello?"  
  
He sounds like he's been through hell. Literally. I don't think I've ever heard anyone so broken down.  
  
"Um, hi, Matt."  
  
"Hi, TK. What's up?" His voice has equal parts relief, surprise and resignation, and I wonder who he expected. Then I could hit myself for being so stupid to actually wonder.  
  
"Um...not much." I decide to just bite the bullet. "Matt, I heard. About...Tai."  
  
"Oh." He says, so softly I can barely hear it. "Yeah. He...I came back..."  
  
"I'm really sorry, Matt."  
  
"Don't be. It was my fault, TK. I expected him to wait for me forever. I was an idiot."  
  
"He really loved you."  
  
"And I love him."  
  
Oh, shit. 'Love.' He's still using present tense.  
  
"Well, you could have..."  
  
"Shown it better? I know. I screwed up, big time."  
  
"I also saw on MTV...Why'd you leave the band? Because Tai left you?"  
  
Matt laughs, but there's no joy in it. It's a dry, humorless laugh. "I left to spend more time with Tai, TK. But I came home and he had left."  
  
"Oh." That sets me back for a second. "Well, I'm sure if you just tell him..."  
  
"I won't. He doesn't want to see me. I might as well do what he wants for once."  
  
I hear the click of a lighter, then a long inhalation. "That's a cigarette, right?"  
  
"What else would it be?"  
  
"Well..."  
  
"I don't use drugs anymore, TK. I stopped."  
  
"For Tai. And he's gone."  
  
"Yeah. He's gone." There's a long pause and I can practically see him taking a drag off one of his cigarettes. "Is there a point to all this?"  
  
"I thought you might need to talk."  
  
"Oh. Well, you know now."  
  
"Yeah. I know."  
  
"Well, then."  
  
I don't want to hang up. Each time he speaks, I get a little more frightened for him, and I'm afraid of what he might do if I leave him alone.  
  
But it's becoming blatantly obvious that he doesn't want to talk. He wants to stew in his hell for a while.  
  
I should probably let him. He needs it.  
  
"So...um...Matt...I'll talk to you later, okay?"  
  
"Yeah. Right. Tell Iori I said hi."  
  
"Okay. Um...bye."  
  
"Bye."  
  
I wait for him to hang up.  
  
He waits for me to hang up.  
  
Thus, no one hangs up.  
  
"Um, Matt?"  
  
"What, TK?"  
  
"Are you still there?"  
  
He makes a little snorting sound. "Yes, I'm still here."  
  
"Oh. Goodbye."  
  
"GOODBYE, Takeru."  
  
Finally I take the phone away from my ear and rest it back on the cradle.  
  
It almost hurts.  
  
*****  
  
*Tai*  
  
Ring, ring...  
  
"I'll get it! Hello, Takenouchi-Tachikawa residence. Mimi speaking...oh, hi, Kari. Yeah, he's here. Hold on." Mimi turns around, hand over the receiver. "Tai, it's Kari...and Miss Lilly, you take that cat off the table NOW. Cats don't belong on the table."  
  
Lilly pouts for a second, then picks up the cat and sits it in her lap. I reach out a hand and Mimi hands me the receiver. "Hi, Kari."  
  
"Hi, Tai...um..."  
  
"How are things?"  
  
"Just fine. Um, Tai..."  
  
"How's Miyako?"  
  
"She's fine, Tai. Listen..."  
  
"Is her new job going okay?"  
  
"Yes. Listen to me, Tai..."  
  
"And you. Have you..."  
  
"TAI!"  
  
"What?"  
  
"I heard. That you left Matt."  
  
"Yeah. I did. So?"  
  
"Why?"  
  
"I'd had enough of the Ishida Yamato experience. Decided to live for me for a while."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"You know, the whole ego thing had really started to get to me. And I don't think we'd talked for weeks. "  
  
"Why now, then? I mean..."  
  
"Why? I'll tell you why. I got a call the other day."  
  
"A...call?"  
  
I wave my hand and Mimi nods. "C'mon, Punkin." She mutters. "Lets take you outside and play, okay?"  
  
"I wanna stay here, Meema."  
  
"You don't want to go outside? It's nice."  
  
Lilly looks up like she's going to argue, but she apparently sees some "Don't mess with me" look on Mimi's face, because she says, "Okay, Meema. Come on, Happy." She scoops up her cat, wipes a sticky hand on her overalls and makes a run for the front hall. Mimi follows.  
  
"Tai? You there?"  
  
"Yeah. I was just getting rid of the peanut gallery."  
  
"So...a call?"  
  
"Yeah. Some guy named Laine. He said that he'd been fucking Matt all through the last tour, and he wanted so much money or he'd go to the papers. Apparently Matt had been paying him off for a while."  
  
"Oh my god..."  
  
"Yeah. And he also said that Matt's apparently back on heroin. And you know..."  
  
"Yeah. I know."  
  
"So...it was just all too much. He was cheating on me, lying to me, and hiding it all from me. And I don't need ANY of that. Oh, and apparently this Laine guy wasn't the only one, either. To quote the remarkable Laine 'When Matt gets stoned, he gets horny as hell.'"  
  
"Oh."  
  
"And since I know you have TK or someone talking to him, let him know that a single call would have been nice, lately. And that all this stuff wouldn't be pissing me off as much if I'd heard it from him. Okay?"  
  
"Um...okay."  
  
"Love ya, Kari."  
  
"Bye."  
  
Clickit  
  
*****  
  
*TK*  
  
"How was Matt?"  
  
"Well, I think the best thing that can be said is that he's probably not going to actively kill himself. I don't think he's that interested in taking care of himself, though. He's really depressed. What about Tai?"  
  
"Very angry. Apparently he found out that Matt's been cheating on him. And paying his lovers off. And was apparently back on drugs."  
  
"Matt told me he'd gone clean."  
  
"Even if he's telling the truth, that's two out of three, TK." There was a long pause. "Maybe this is for the best."  
  
"What?"  
  
"They haven't been working out for a while, TK. Maybe it's time for them to move on. Yeah, it was great when we were all happily paired off, but nothing lasts forever."  
  
"Kari, you didn't hear Matt. He sounded like his world just ended. He was lost. I can't leave him like that."  
  
"Well, what did HE say about getting back together with Tai?"  
  
"Um...well..."  
  
"TK?"  
  
"It was more what he didn't say."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"He said that he wanted to leave Tai alone, since Tai obviously didn't want to see him anymore."  
  
"Well, there you go."  
  
"He also said that he still loved Tai."  
  
"Of course. Think how you'd be if Iori left you."  
  
"I don't want to think about that."  
  
"And I don't want to think about Miyako leaving me."  
  
"But...it just doesn't seem right, Kari."  
  
"I know. But you, out of everyone, should know that breaking up is usually forever. You and Matt."  
  
"Yeah." I can still remember some disastrous attempts to get my parents back together, back when I was little. And things Matt had done.  
  
None of them worked.  
  
I can hear noises at the door. "Kari? Iori's home. I'll call you later, okay?"  
  
"Okay."  
  
Clickit  
  
Iori is standing right inside the door, pulling off his uniform jacket. I walk right up and wrap my arms around him.  
  
"TK?" He asks, somewhat confused.  
  
I think I'm about to cry. "Just...promise you'll never leave me, Iori. Promise me that."  
  
Iori stands, surprised, for a second, almost long enough for me to pull back my arms, but then he reaches up and smoothes out my hair. "I won't, TK. Don't worry."  
  
*****  
  
TBC  



	4. Part 4

Chapter 4: Mostly Daiken, but it sets up a few situations for later on. Oh, and there are a few references to my unfinished-and-unnamed Daiken epic which will be making an appearance shortly (I hope...) you just basically need to know that Daisuke and Ken are living in New Orleans, Daisuke's been mostly disowned and Ken has cut off his own family ties.  
  
*****  
  
*Ken*  
  
I come home to find all the windows open and the air conditioning running as hard as it can. It's a sweltering, horribly humid day, and I can't really fault Daisuke for fighting the heat any way he can...even if he's an idiot some times. I drop my bag and turn off the AC, it's dark and it gets cooler, and, anyway, I tend to prefer the windows to the AC if I get a choice, even if there wasn't the issue of the electric bill, our machine pops and tends to wheeze like a dying beast. As soon as I finally stop the god-awful racket, I can hear the slightest strains of Daisuke's radio coming from his "workroom" (which, in a previous life, was an unused closet until Daisuke commandeered it and hauled his desk in there). I open the door to see Daisuke hunched over his drawing table, phone hunched between his shoulder and ear. He turns to look at me, then drops his pencil and takes the phone in his hand. "Listen. I'll call you back" He says. "Yeah, I love you, too. Bye." Then he hits the disconnect button and drops it to the floor.  
  
"Who was that?" I ask.  
  
He stands and stretches. "Jun. Pick a number between one and three."  
  
I find myself almost laughing. "Why?"  
  
"I have some news for you, and it'll be easier if you choose how you want to die first."  
  
"The ogre's bargain?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Nevermind. Bad news?"  
  
"You might say that. Listen, Ken, just pick a number."  
  
"Fine. Two."  
  
Daisuke spreads his arms and gets a funny looking grin on his face. "I'm the good kid again."  
  
I raise an eyebrow at him. "Um...what?"  
  
"Jun has just...comparatively...made me look good." He smiles and doesn't elaborate.  
  
"Fine. I'll bite." I say. "What did she do?"  
  
"I'm going to be an uncle."  
  
"That's not THAT bad..."  
  
"She has no intention of marrying the father. And...while I know that this means NOTHING in my parents eyes...well...by the end of this week either they'll be saying that they never had any kids, or...I don't know."  
  
"I see." I said slowly. "I can...kind of...see why your parents would be angry."  
  
"Hell, Ken, I think I'M angry. Can you see Jun as a mom?"  
  
"Honestly? Yes. But I also have to admit that I'd probably be shaky if she was my sister. When's she due?"  
  
"Huh? Oh, late December."  
  
I nod. Daisuke grins, again. "Pick another number."  
  
"One."  
  
He growls a little, then turns and picks up his script from his desk, then half-throws it at me. "Just read." He moans. "The margin notes."  
  
Daisuke pencils a few small comic books. He started doing it for fun, and now it's become his primary source of income. Unfortunately, one of his writers has taken a liking to him, and seems completely unable to take in the niceties of a comment such as "I have a very jealous boyfriend" and insists on writing little flirtatious comments in her margins before she sends the scripts on to Daisuke. I find it hilarious, especially in a karmic sense, seeing how Daisuke used to be. Daisuke...sees no humor whatsoever in the situation. I flip through the pages again, then feel that smile threaten my lips for a slight moment. "She's getting inventive." I say.  
  
He groans. "God. I mean, she's a pretty good writer, this is fun, but..."  
  
"Just use the magic words. 'I'm not gay, but I'm learning.'" Daisuke tends to say that if it wasn't for me and Takeru, he'd be completely straight.  
  
"Already tried that." He says. "And I used the 'My boyfriend is very jealous and a Judo master' line, too. I don't think she believes me. Maybe if she had never met you, it might fly, but..."  
  
I feign being insulted, "What are you insinuating?"  
  
"You don't LOOK dangerous, Ken." Then he stops and starts to laugh, a little. That smile that's been quirking around my lips since we started talking finally makes it's appearance.  
  
"No. I guess I don't." I say, slowly. "What's the other news?"  
  
He stops laughing and calms. Then he takes a deep breath and smiles at me. "You should try writing some time." He says, slowly. "I think you'd be good at it."  
  
"Thanks." I say. "You should learn how to change the subject. What is it, Daisuke?"  
  
He sighs. "You know, if you listened to the radio...not those sad bastard tapes of yours..."  
  
"Daisuke?"  
  
He takes the script from my hands and, slowly, lays it on the table. "TK called me earlier today. It seems that...listen. Tai left Matt. Matt left the band and has, apparently, lost his mind. Or something like that."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"There's...a little bit more." He says, still slowly. "Listen, Ken...TK and I had a long talk earlier today...and...it was on his phone-bill, so don't worry..."  
  
"Daisuke, I'm not worried about the phone bill..."  
  
"Oh. Good. So, listen. We came up with this plan...and I want you to just listen and not immediately throw it out just because TK came up with it...or to see anything paranoid in it or anything..."  
  
"Daisuke?" I love this man, but there are times I just want to kick him.  
  
"We...I...we think that Matt needs someone to go help take care of him. And...and...okay, I'll just say it. TK said he'll pay for a plane ticket and expenses if you'll go down and help look after Matt."  
  
"What? Why me?"  
  
"It makes sense, Ken. I mean...Matt's pretty messed up...he isn't really talking to TK...and anyway, TK's in Japan..."  
  
"And Matt's in California and we're in Louisiana." I say.  
  
"We're still the closest." Daisuke points out. When did he get so logical about these things? "And, anyway, you've been through a bit of Hell yourself, you should know..."  
  
"Maybe I have." I say. "But..."  
  
"Look, Ken, you don't have to decide now." He puts his hands on my upper arms and then pulls me into a kiss. "Just think about it." He whispers into my lips.  
  
I put my hands over his. "I know what this is." I say.  
  
He raises an eyebrow.  
  
"It's your usual Modus Operandi." I say. "You're going to get me into bed, get me into a...delicate...position, and then ask me again. And then I usually say yes. If I don't, you wait until I'm falling asleep, then you ask again."  
  
"I don't do that!" He sputters.  
  
"Sure you do." I whisper. "I don't even think you realize you're doing it. It almost always works, too."  
  
He looks distant for a second. "I do do that, don't I?" He asks. "I'm sorry, Ken."  
  
"I don't really mind." I say. "Most of the time, I'd say yes anyway, and you pay complete attention to me until I do."  
  
He pulls my brow down to meet his. "Does that mean you're going to agree?" He asks.  
  
"Maybe." I say. "But I want to be the center of attention for a little while before I do."  
  
He smiles for a second, then wraps his arms around me. "I can deal with that." He whispers, then kisses me again before he takes my hands to lead me into the bedroom.  



End file.
